It has been noted that the Algerian university is currently confronted with the problems posed by the training of its university teachers. Why, we may ask, have practitioners and, above all, researchers not yet found a solution to this thorny problem? There's no easy answer, but it's possible to point to a few fundamental reasons that may explain, in part, the difficulties encountered in the emergence and development of university teacher training. We can certainly claim that experienced teachers learn from experience, improve over the years and eventually build up a form of didactic and pedagogical know-how, despite their ignorance of the educational sciences. However, while mastery of content is an essential prerequisite, the novice teacher will soon realize that, once faced with a "heterogeneous clientele", other qualities will be required in addition.